New! Gourmet Cakes at Amazon.com

You may have noticed the new Gourmet Food Store at Amazon.com Even though the store is still in beta testing, everything works so you can search, browse and buy. Shipped right to your door or delivered as gifts, the store includes hundreds of brands and tens of thousands of products including decadent, beautiful cakes and pastries. A search for cake yielded nearly 5000 results! Prices range from only .49 for Table Talk Pies, my mother's favorite and very difficult to find here, to $130 for a Dean & Deluca Red and Pink Stripe Pastry Cake. Also from Dean & Deluca, a spectacular Pumpkin Cake with a price tag of $110 and a more reasonably priced Package Cake at $80. Here are my top three picks from the new store. They're reasonably priced, beautiful and perfect for autumn desserts or gift-giving.


Almond Mazzerine Tart from Larsen's Danish Bakery $7.95

This is a truly hand-crafted dessert, baked in a shortbread crust and filled with lots of smooth Mazzerine filling made with pure almond paste. It's decorated with a caramel and sliced almond topping with chocolate brushed around the edges.


Pesche Alla Crema from Ottomanelli.com $25.46

Pesche Alla Crema are hand-carved from light sponge cake to look like real peaches. They are filled with thick & creamy vanilla custard, dipped in imported liquors and then rolled in sugar to make the fuzz. A delicious hand-made green chocolate leaf completes the effect.


Macadamia White Chocolate Bourbon Liqueur Cake from Sussie's of Mississippi $25.57

White raisins folded into a rich butter and bourbon cake, draped with a layer of rich white chocolate, and crowned with toasted Hawaiian macadamia nuts and whole Southern pecans.